Ashley Judd Splits From Husband, Prepping for Senate Run?

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Ashley Judd has split from her husband Dario Franchitti after 12 years. The two issued a statement regarding their decision to separate and their plans for the future.

"We have mutually decided to end our marriage. We'll always be family and continue to cherish our relationship based on the special love, integrity, and respect we have always enjoyed," the couple said in a statement to People magazine.

The two became engaged in 1999 after dating for several years. Judd, an actress, and Franchitti, a NASCAR driver, had a 2-year engagement before marrying in an intimate ceremony in Scotland. They split their time between living in Scotland and the United States. The couple never had any children, which Judd said was a personal and ethical decision for the two of them.

"It's unconscionable to breed, with the number of children who are starving to death in impoverished countries. I know it's a strong opinion a lot of people won't agree with and that's not to say some day I might not feel a different impulse," Judd told The Sunday Mail in 2006.

While Judd has been a constant activist and humanitarian, her name has most recently been tossed around in the political arena as a challenge to Republican Senator Mitch McConnell in 2014. Judd has not spoken publicly about her intentions to run or not, but the public, and other senators, have been supportive about a political run.

"I cherish Kentucky, heart and soul, and while I'm very honored by the consideration, we have just finished an election, so let's focus on coming together to keep moving America's families, and especially our kids, forward," her representative told The Courier-Journal.

"Ashley has yet to decide about running for the United States Senate," her spokeswoman told Politico last month. "She is honored by the incredible encouragement from her fellow Kentuckians and the national interest, including Senator McConnell."